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PR W-2 Process

PR W-2 Process (Payroll > Programs) initializes or re-initializes W-2 information for a tax year and produces W-2 forms and electronic-filing files. Employer information prints in boxes b and c. Since December 2021, print and eFile use Aatrix on the workstation (install/enable Aatrix first). If Aatrix is not available in the jurisdiction, use the federal text-file export instead.

Prefer fixing source payroll (timecards, accumulations, codes) and re-initializing over typing permanent corrections only on the W-2. Amount edits on employee W-2 rows do not update the rest of Vista.

Before you start​

  • Employee accumulation data for the tax year is complete.
  • Company / federal / state-local / Box 14 setup for the year is ready (or will be set on the tabs before each Initialize). Prior-year Earnings / Deductions / Liability defaults can copy forward on Federal and State/Local Information.
  • Aatrix is installed on the workstation when you will print or eFile that way.
  • For electronic filing: User ID #, Contact Name, Phone, Delivery Address, and Email on PR W-2 Process (Contact Name max 27; Phone max 15; Phone Ext max 5).

Steps​

Initialize​

You can back up and change headers, but you must re-initialize every later header. After federal and state initialize, changing federal requires re-initialize of federal, then state.

  1. Open PR W-2 Process. Enter Tax Year (YYYY). January–November defaults the prior year; December defaults the current year.
  2. Confirm or override header defaults from HQ Company Setup (EIN # from Federal Tax ID with non-numeric characters stripped; Company Name; Location Address; Delivery Address; City; State; Zip / Zip Ext). Enter User ID # (SSA PIN, up to 8 digits). Check Third Party Sick Pay Indicator if you are a third-party sick pay provider.
  3. Set company information, then Initialize Header.
  4. On Federal Information, set federal items (F4 for the standard list; Federal Type E-Earnings, D-Deduction, or L-Liability; Code + Type selects the amount source). Then Initialize Federal. That updates each employee (Employees tab / PR W-2 Employee Edit). Leaving the tab or form without initializing discards Federal Information changes.
  5. On State/Local Information, set state and local deductions, then Initialize State. Uncheck State/Local Initialize for any row to exclude it.
  6. On State Box 14 Information, enter state-specific Box 14 (Line, State, EDL Type E/D/L, Code, Description up to 20), then Initialize State Box 14. State-specific info shows only if earnings or taxes were paid in that state.
  7. Choose a retirement-plan initialize option: For All Employees, Only Check For Employees With Retirement Plan (uses Retirement Plan on PR Employees), or For None Of The Employees.
  8. Edit individual employees as needed (see below).
  9. Preview federal and state reporting (Preview Federal and State W-2 Reporting Information / PR W-2 Preview Report). If setup is wrong, recreate files in PR W-2 Process before print or export.
  1. Tasks > Launch Aatrix Print and eFile opens PR Aatrix - W2 Print and eFile. Accept or override Tax Year, select Form Type (for example US W-2/W-3), Continue, and follow Aatrix prompts. Aatrix does not send data back to Vista. Corrections made only in Vista require a re-upload.

NJ only: enter NJPFLI or NJPDI manually in Aatrix Verify Employee Information (not pulled from Vista). Private Plan account numbers print in Box 14; amounts in Boxes 18–20.

Employee paper copies when not filing paper: PR W2 Employee Copies (Payroll Reports) — Copies B, C, and 2 only; not for W-2 paper filings.

Federal text file when Aatrix is unavailable​

  1. Tasks > Generate W-2 e-File opens PR Generate W-2 e-File. Optionally set Third Party Income Tax Withholding, State Filter, and Local Code Filter. Export, save the text file, note the federal W-2 record count, then submit to SSA.

Employee edits (PR W-2 Employee Edit)​

Available only after the tax year is initialized. Use for misspelled name, new address, or amounts missed or added at initialize. Permanent master changes belong on source forms; after initialize, outside changes require re-initialize before continuing.

  • Info / Additional Info: name, address, SSN, tax state, marital status, Box 13 (Statutory, Retirement Plan, Third Party Sick Pay), electronic W-2 consent, SUI.
  • Federal Information: wages and withholding from items selected at federal initialize (amounts from PR Employee Accumulations). Box 14 codes up to 8 (items 40, 41, 46, 47, 51–54). Add Box 12 or 14 by Item (F4) and Amount; delete a current-year item with the toolbar Delete.
  • State Info / Local Info: states and localities from initialize; add, edit, or delete. Local Type comes from PR Local Codes Tax Type (or from PR Deductions/Liabilities Tax Type for employee-based local taxes).
  • Misc Box 14 Detail: initialized state-specific items; add/edit/delete. An added item’s description prints only if its box number matches an initialized item.

Reprint / correct​

  • Not yet printed or submitted in Aatrix: cancel the filing in Aatrix, correct in Vista, re-transmit (still Original filings).
  • After submit to the taxing authority: correct only in Aatrix. You may manually match Vista, but Vista cannot submit corrections to Aatrix. Path: PR W-2 Process > Tasks > Launch Aatrix Print and eFile > History > form type and period > Edit > History File Options, then follow Aatrix.
  • Resubmittal and WFID on the Info tab are unused and disabled since December 2021; resubmits are done in Aatrix History.

Notes​

  • Viewpoint supplies standard reporting items each tax year. If you run before new-year items exist, use prior-year codes, then re-initialize with the correct codes.
  • Federal Misc Description 1–4 (up to 20 characters) print in Box 14 (optional; union dues, health premiums, and similar). Federal Item 10 (401(k) USERRA make-up): Year is required on sequences other than Seq 1; Box 12 prints the total only.
  • Maryland / Missouri have extra header fields (NAICS, contact title, tax totals, credits). If filing both states with Total Credits, enter one state’s amount, process those W-2s, change the value, then process the other.
  • Related: PR Company Parameters, PR Employees, Understanding PR Employee Accumulations.